How to Make Claude (and other AIs) Write Like You

Use the interview method to generate a file with instructions that teach AI how you write.

In 2023, many people were against AI writing.

In 2026, many writers are using AI.

Some writers I follow have admitted they use AI for writing. Others haven’t mentioned it publicly, but they’ve suspiciously increased the number of posts they publish per week over the past few years.

Heck, Substack’s top newsletter in education is called “Write with AI.“

I’m not against AI.

I’m against using AI for bad writing.

If you use AI to enhance your writing and produce high-quality work more frequently, your readers will be happy.

The problem is that most people use AI to produce bad writing.

The fix isn’t a better prompt. It’s a file.

One file that teaches AI exactly how you write, what you never say, and what makes your writing yours. You create it once. You reuse it every time.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to build that file from scratch using an interview method that takes about 30 minutes.

Hey, Diana here! I recently renamed my Substack to Write, Prompt, Scale.

Every post will be about building smarter AI writing systems — not replacing your voice, but amplifying it. If this sounds like a journey worth following, support me by becoming a paid subscriber :)

Why most produce AI slop

Since ChatGPT’s release, we’ve been obsessed with the em-dash and a few words that make your writing sound AI.

Here’s my (ironic) response to this:

My advice: Don’t mind AI words.

It’s fine if you have a few AI words in your vocabulary.

What’s not fine is to produce content under your name that doesn’t sound like you.

By default, AI doesn’t know your voice. It doesn’t know you hate the word “utilize.” It doesn’t know you always open with a personal story, or that you’d never use a semicolon in a million years.

So it defaults to the safest, most average version of whatever you asked for.

That’s not AI’s fault. You gave it a vague instruction in your prompts and expected a specific result.

The file that fixes this

The fix is an .md file (a simple text file with some formatting). The one we’ll create contains everything AI needs to write like you.

Not “write well.” Write like you.

Here’s what goes in it:

• Words and phrases you’d never use

• Sentence patterns you default to

• How you open and close pieces

• Your formatting instincts (short paragraphs? headers? lists?)

• What your writing sounds like at its best

• Writers you admire and what you’d steal from each one

• Positions you’d never take

• and more!

The insight that makes this work: most of a good voice profile is about what you reject. Not “I like direct writing,” but “I’d never use semicolons because they make my writing sound like a college essay.”

That’s the kind of specificity AI can actually use.

How to create your voice file (the interview method)

You don’t write the file from scratch. That’s painful, and you’ll miss the important stuff.

Instead, you let Claude (or any other AI) interview you. It asks the questions. You take your time. You elaborate your answer. At the end, it hands you a finished file.

Here’s the prompt (credits to The PyCoach):

You are going to help me capture my writing voice in a .md file.

Ask me questions one at a time. Cover:

• What I write and who I write for

• What my writing sounds like at its best — ask me to share an example paragraph

• What my writing sounds like when I’m just going through the motions

• Phrases I use naturally that feel like “me”

• Words and phrases I hate seeing in my own writing

• Topics I always come back to, even when I’m not trying to

• What I refuse to write about, or positions I’d never take

• My formatting instincts: long or short paragraphs? headers or prose? lists or sentences?

• Writers I admire — and specifically what I’d steal from each one

• What feedback I keep getting on my writing

• What feedback I keep ignoring, and why

Ask 40-50 questions. One at a time.

Interview rules:

• Push back on vague answers. If I say “I like directness,” ask me what that looks like in a real sentence.

• Call out contradictions. If something conflicts with an earlier answer, flag it.

• Don’t accept “I don’t know.” Reframe the question or approach it differently.

• Go deeper on interesting threads. If something unusual comes up, follow it before moving on.

• Ask for real samples — actual paragraphs I’ve written, sentences I’d never publish. Descriptions mean less than evidence.

• Don’t validate my answers. No “great point” or “that’s interesting.” Just ask the next question.

• If my answer sounds like the writer I wish I were rather than the writer I actually am, call it out.

• If my answer could describe any writer in my space, flag it. Ask what’s specific to me.

When we’re done, compile everything into a .md file with clear section headers. Include the specific examples alongside the rules — they’re what make the file useful.

Paste this into Claude and answer every question.

When Claude pushes back and asks for specifics, give them. That’s where the file gets good. The vague answers (”I like conversational writing”) produce generic profiles. The specific answers (”I never use semicolons and I break long sentences into two short ones separated by a period”) produce profiles that actually work.

At the end of the interview, you’ll get an .md file with your voice.

That’s one profile. To create other profiles (business context, project work, etc), read this guide: artificialcorner.com/p/md-file

Why you should use this .md file in Claude

There’s a reason why I mention Claude (and not ChatGPT) multiple times so far.

You have two ways to use this .md file.

Option 1: Paste it into any conversation. Upload the .md file at the start of a Claude or ChatGPT chat and say “Read this voice profile first. Then write [whatever you need].” Works with any AI.

Option 2: Use Claude Cowork (the better option). Drop the .md file into a folder on your computer. Open that folder in Cowork. Claude reads the file automatically every time you work in that folder.

No pasting. No re-uploading. No re-explaining.

You just say “draft a newsletter intro about XYZ” and Claude already knows how you write.

Here’s how to set up Cowork:

1. Download Claude for desktop → claude.com/download

2. Open the app and choose “Cowork”

3. Give access to the folder containing your .md file

At the end of your prompt, add this line:

[prompt]

Before you start, read [voice_profile].md first

From that point on, every session in that folder starts with Claude already knowing your voice.

For more about Cowork and .md files, read this: artificialcorner.com/p/md-file

The difference it makes

Without a voice profile, Claude writes like Claude.

With a voice profile, Claude writes like a rough first draft of you. It’s not perfect (you’ll still need to edit), but it’s close enough that you’re making tweaks instead of rewriting from scratch.

That’s the bar.

Not “AI writes and I publish.” That’s slop.

The bar is “AI drafts, and I edit.” If the draft needs a total rewrite, the profile isn’t detailed enough. Go back, answer more questions, and add more examples.

One more thing

Your voice profile isn’t static. After you use it for a few weeks, you’ll notice things Claude keeps getting wrong. Add those to the file.

Maybe it keeps using a word or punctuation you hate. Add it to the “never use” list. Maybe it starts every paragraph the same way. Add a note about varying your openings.

The file gets better the more you use it. 30 minutes now saves you hours later.

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